This is a recipe I've recently found on Allrecipes that I love. For all those holiday and family gatherings when you're asked to bring a potato dish, this one gets rave reviews and you never have leftovers.
4 Russet potatoes, sliced into 1/4 inch slices
1 Onion sliced into rings
Salt and Pepper to taste
3 Tablespoons butter
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 Teaspoon salt
2 Cups Milk
1.5 Cups of Shredded cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 400F (200C). Grease a 1 quart casserole dish. Layer the bottom with 1/2 the potatoes. Place all the onion rings on top of the potatoes and cover with remaining potatoes.
In a medium-size sauce pan, over medium heat, melt butter. Whisk in flour and salt and stir for one minute. Stir in milk and cook until mixture is thick. Stir in 1 Cup of cheese until fully melted. Pour mixture over potatoes. Sprinkle remaining shredded cheese over top and cover with aluminum foil.
Bake in oven 1.5 hrs or until potatoes are soft.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Candy Bar Pizza
I got this recipe from one of the missionaries in Kenya. They are selling a cookbook to help raise money for adoption fees as they adopt a baby boy from Ethopia. He will make their 4th child. They are wonderful family and the cookbook is great. It only cost $12! If you are interested, here is their blog:
Candy Bar Pizza
1 1/4 sticks butter
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 c flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
12 oz chocolate chips
1/2 c smooth peanut butter
6 regular size candy bars (I did half reeses and kit kat) We decided the kit kat side was better.
Preheat oven to 375. Lightly grease pizza pan. Cream together butter and sugars. Beat in egg and vanilla. Beat in salt and baking soda. Gradually beat in flour. Stir in one cup of the chocolate chips. Spread in prepared pan. Bake 15 – 20 min until lightly browned. Remove from oven and sprinkle with rest of chocolate chips. Drop peanut butter by spoonfuls over pizza. Return to oven for one minute. Gently spread chocolate and peanut butter over the pizza. Let cool slightly so as not to melt candy topping and then sprinkle with chopped candy bars. Let cool completely before cutting.
It’s pretty rich and can feed a lot of people but really yummy!!!
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Far-from-Disaster Cake
Taken from this blog. I haven't actually tried it but just reading the darn thing made me want to.... :)
Far-from-Disaster CakeAdapted from Epicurious
This recipe makes two 10” layers, three 8” layers, or roughly 36 cupcakes. Unfrosted and tightly wrapped, the cakes freeze beautifully for a month or two, so you can spread your generosity over multiple occasions.
3 oz fine-quality semisweet chocolate
1 ½ cups hot brewed coffee
3 cups sugar
2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 ½ cups unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp baking soda
¾ tsp baking powder
1 ¼ tsp salt
3 large eggs
¾ cup canola oil
1 ½ cups well-shaken buttermilk
¾ tsp pure vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. If you’re making cupcakes, line the wells of your pans with fluted paper liners, or grease and dust them with flour or cocoa. If you’re making larger cakes, grease pans and line bottoms with rounds of wax paper. Grease paper.
Finely chop chocolate and in a bowl combine with hot coffee. Let mixture stand, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.
Into a large bowl sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another (very) large bowl, beat eggs with an electric mixer until thickened slightly and lemon-colored (about 3 minutes with a standing mixer or 5 minutes with a hand-held mixer). Slowly add oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and melted chocolate mixture to eggs, beating until combined well. Add sugar mixture and beat on medium speed, bracing yourself against puffs of cocoa-and-flour dust, until just combined well.
Divide batter between pans. Bake in middle of oven 20 to 25 minutes for cupcakes, or 50 to 70 minutes for larger cakes, until a tester inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool cakes completely in pans on racks. Run a thin knife around edges of pans and remove cupcakes, or invert larger cakes onto racks. If making larger cakes, carefully remove wax paper. Cakes may be made one day ahead and kept, wrapped well in plastic wrap, at room temperature.
Ganache Frosting
Again, adapted from Epicurious
1 lb fine-quality semi-sweet chocolate
1 cup heavy cream
2 Tbs sugar
2 Tbs light corn syrup
½ stick (¼ cup) unsalted butter
Finely chop chocolate. In a 1 ½- to 2-quart saucepan, bring cream, sugar, and corn syrup to a boil over moderately low heat, whisking until sugar is dissolved. Remove pan from heat and add chocolate, whisking until chocolate is melted. Cut butter into pieces and add to frosting, whisking until smooth.
Transfer frosting to a bowl and cool, stirring occasionally, until spreadable. You may want to place the bowl in the fridge for a bit, but stir it now and then until it cools to your desired consistency. Spread.
Far-from-Disaster CakeAdapted from Epicurious
This recipe makes two 10” layers, three 8” layers, or roughly 36 cupcakes. Unfrosted and tightly wrapped, the cakes freeze beautifully for a month or two, so you can spread your generosity over multiple occasions.
3 oz fine-quality semisweet chocolate
1 ½ cups hot brewed coffee
3 cups sugar
2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 ½ cups unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp baking soda
¾ tsp baking powder
1 ¼ tsp salt
3 large eggs
¾ cup canola oil
1 ½ cups well-shaken buttermilk
¾ tsp pure vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. If you’re making cupcakes, line the wells of your pans with fluted paper liners, or grease and dust them with flour or cocoa. If you’re making larger cakes, grease pans and line bottoms with rounds of wax paper. Grease paper.
Finely chop chocolate and in a bowl combine with hot coffee. Let mixture stand, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.
Into a large bowl sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another (very) large bowl, beat eggs with an electric mixer until thickened slightly and lemon-colored (about 3 minutes with a standing mixer or 5 minutes with a hand-held mixer). Slowly add oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and melted chocolate mixture to eggs, beating until combined well. Add sugar mixture and beat on medium speed, bracing yourself against puffs of cocoa-and-flour dust, until just combined well.
Divide batter between pans. Bake in middle of oven 20 to 25 minutes for cupcakes, or 50 to 70 minutes for larger cakes, until a tester inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool cakes completely in pans on racks. Run a thin knife around edges of pans and remove cupcakes, or invert larger cakes onto racks. If making larger cakes, carefully remove wax paper. Cakes may be made one day ahead and kept, wrapped well in plastic wrap, at room temperature.
Ganache Frosting
Again, adapted from Epicurious
1 lb fine-quality semi-sweet chocolate
1 cup heavy cream
2 Tbs sugar
2 Tbs light corn syrup
½ stick (¼ cup) unsalted butter
Finely chop chocolate. In a 1 ½- to 2-quart saucepan, bring cream, sugar, and corn syrup to a boil over moderately low heat, whisking until sugar is dissolved. Remove pan from heat and add chocolate, whisking until chocolate is melted. Cut butter into pieces and add to frosting, whisking until smooth.
Transfer frosting to a bowl and cool, stirring occasionally, until spreadable. You may want to place the bowl in the fridge for a bit, but stir it now and then until it cools to your desired consistency. Spread.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Easy Christmas Fudge
One of the signs that I have been feeling better during this 2nd trimester is the fact that i have baked two days in a row! (I have even done my own dishes!!!) :)
I got this super easy (easy for fudge anyways) recipe out of the Pillsbury Holiday Baking book from a few years ago.
Prep time: 30 min
Total time: 2 hours
You will need (I highly suggest having EVERYTHING out and cut before beginning the process):
4.5 c. sugar
1/2 c. butter
12 oz evaporated milk
4.5 c (or one bag) of mini marshmallows
12 oz semisweet chocolate chips
12oz sweet baking chocolate, cut into pieces
2 oz unsweetened chocolate, cut into pieces
2 t. vanilla
1/4 t. almond extract
Optional:
1 c. chopped walnuts, pecans
colored sugar for topping
Line 15x10x1 inch pan with foil, grease. In a 5-6 quart saucepan, cook sugar, butter and milk over medium heat, stirring constantly. Stir constantly till sugar is dissolved and mixture is boiling. Boil uncovered without stirring for 5 minutes.
Remove from heat. Add mallows; stir till melted. Add chocolate chips, sweet and unsweet chocolate, stirring constantly till all is melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in extract, vanilla, and nuts. Quickly spread mixture in pan. Sprinkle with colored sugar if desired. Cool completely (about 1.5 hours).
Remove fudge from pan by lifting foil; remove foil from sides of fudge. Cut into squares and enjoy!
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Feta Chicken
My midwife wants to me to try to get 80-100 g of protein a day while pregnant. I don't think I have succeeded thus far, but this should help! (one piece of chicken has 30g+ in it!!!) I made it awhile ago and it was so good. Moist and just different. I got it off of AllRecipes.com.
Some changes I made were: using just Feta Cheese and sprinkling basil inside and out of the chicken, I do NOT sprinkle bread crumbs on the bottom of the pan cause it was a mess to clean afterwards, Use olive oil to bread the chicken, and finally, I had a hard time getting the chicken to fold over and stay that way - so I'll use a toothpick to assist with that.
Ingredients
Directions
Monday, October 4, 2010
Italian Meatballs
Mario Batali's Lemon Scented Meatballs
These are amazing. They freeze really well, and reheat nicely in our toaster oven under foil.
We usually eat them with fresh crusty bread, a sage and white bean spread, and a lightly-cooked green veggie of some sort (e.g. asparagus, broccoli rabe, etc.).
The only substitution I make is ground pork for the veal. Also for ease and to make it slightly healthier, I bake them, and they're almost as good as fried (which I did the first time). I usually bake them on a sheet pan at 400 degrees, for about 20 minutes or until they're nice browned on the outside and cooked through in the center.
These are amazing. They freeze really well, and reheat nicely in our toaster oven under foil.
We usually eat them with fresh crusty bread, a sage and white bean spread, and a lightly-cooked green veggie of some sort (e.g. asparagus, broccoli rabe, etc.).
The only substitution I make is ground pork for the veal. Also for ease and to make it slightly healthier, I bake them, and they're almost as good as fried (which I did the first time). I usually bake them on a sheet pan at 400 degrees, for about 20 minutes or until they're nice browned on the outside and cooked through in the center.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
French Dip sandwiches
This meal is another favourite of my partner in crime. I feel like it's more of a fall/winter dish, and I made it this past week for this first time this season. I got the recipe from Allrecipes. I make a few modifications (explained below). It is amazingly easy for how good it tastes. I just get up half an hour earlier than I usually do, and that's enough time to get it prepped. You wouldn't believe how good the house smells when I come home after work.
I don't do too much different than the original recipe, but this is how I do it. I think it probably adds a bit more flavour. If you don't have a slow cooker you could just do it in your oven in a covered casserole dish instead, adjusting times and temps accordingly.
Brown the outside (all sides) of a 3 lb beef roast (fat trimmed off first). (I usually get what's on sale and/or looks good. This week I used eye of round. It was a 3 lb roast on sale for $6 (from $12 because it was close to the sell-by date). I was quite pleased with my thriftiness, especially because we get at least 3 meals out of this.)
Put in slow cooker (I have the smaller size, not the larger family-size one, which is why I use a smaller roast than the recipe calls for). Deglaze the frying pan with the beer. Add to the slow cooker.
Add the soup/broth as in the recipe.
I also add a few cloves of garlic, chopped into a couple of chunks each, and a small sprig of rosemary (or some dried rosemary). I also add a few shakes of Worcestershire sauce to it, and a few grindings of black pepper.
I don't know if I need to do this or not, but when I get home, I take the roast out, slice it up, and then put it back in all those juices while I get the side dish ready, toast the buns, etc.
I usually serve this with something light and mostly vegetable-y because it's so meaty and rich. This week it was just plenty of raw veggies and dip on the side. But homemade oven fries are very nice too - you can dip them in the au jus. :)
So anyway, toast your hoagie buns, put your meat on them, and serve with the juices in the slow cooker, ladled into ramekins or small bowls. Dip your sandwiches with each bite. Yum!
I actually hardly ever use my slow cooker (though I want to use it more - post your recipes!), but I think it's worth it to have one just for this dish, it's that good.
I don't do too much different than the original recipe, but this is how I do it. I think it probably adds a bit more flavour. If you don't have a slow cooker you could just do it in your oven in a covered casserole dish instead, adjusting times and temps accordingly.
Brown the outside (all sides) of a 3 lb beef roast (fat trimmed off first). (I usually get what's on sale and/or looks good. This week I used eye of round. It was a 3 lb roast on sale for $6 (from $12 because it was close to the sell-by date). I was quite pleased with my thriftiness, especially because we get at least 3 meals out of this.)
Put in slow cooker (I have the smaller size, not the larger family-size one, which is why I use a smaller roast than the recipe calls for). Deglaze the frying pan with the beer. Add to the slow cooker.
Add the soup/broth as in the recipe.
I also add a few cloves of garlic, chopped into a couple of chunks each, and a small sprig of rosemary (or some dried rosemary). I also add a few shakes of Worcestershire sauce to it, and a few grindings of black pepper.
I don't know if I need to do this or not, but when I get home, I take the roast out, slice it up, and then put it back in all those juices while I get the side dish ready, toast the buns, etc.
I usually serve this with something light and mostly vegetable-y because it's so meaty and rich. This week it was just plenty of raw veggies and dip on the side. But homemade oven fries are very nice too - you can dip them in the au jus. :)
So anyway, toast your hoagie buns, put your meat on them, and serve with the juices in the slow cooker, ladled into ramekins or small bowls. Dip your sandwiches with each bite. Yum!
I actually hardly ever use my slow cooker (though I want to use it more - post your recipes!), but I think it's worth it to have one just for this dish, it's that good.
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